Four Huskers Earn All-Big Ten Honors

Nebraska gymnasts Hollie Blanske and Grace Williams were named first-team All-Big Ten and Danielle Breen and Jennie Laeng earned second-team All-Big Ten honors, the conference announced Monday.

“It’s an incredible accomplishment to be named to these all-conference teams,” Nebraska Coach Dan Kendig said. “The quality of gymnastics in the Big Ten Conference keeps getting stronger and stronger, and this is quite an honor for all four of our gymnasts. We’re looking forward to the Big Ten Championships next week.”

Blanske, a senior from Oak Grove, Minn., is ranked 16th in the nation with a Regional Qualifying Score (RQS) of 39.410. Blanske has recorded 14 individual event titles for the Huskers this season, including four all-around titles. She posted Nebraska’s highest all-around score of the season, a 39.600 on Senior Day against Utah State on March 6. She also has scored Nebraska’s individual season-highs on vault and floor exercise with 9.95s on each. She was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on January 25. This is the second-consecutive first-team All-Big Ten honor for Blanske after she was named second-team all-conference in 2014.

Williams, a sophomore from Linden, Mich., leads Nebraska with an RQS of 9.890 on beam and has a strong RQS of 39.280 in the all-around this season. Williams has 11 event titles this season, including six balance beam victories. She posted Nebraska’s highest beam score of the season when she scored a 9.95 in a victory over Michigan on Jan. 29. This is the first All-Big Ten honor for Williams.

Breen, a sophomore from Ames, Iowa, has performed as an all-arounder in the final three weeks of the regular season and emerged as one of Nebraska’s strongest gymnasts. She has won all-around titles in two of the last three meets for the Huskers and has set career-high marks in each event in the final three weeks of the regular season. She won the all-around titles with identical 39.475 marks at both the Masters Classic on Feb. 27 and the B1G Five Meet on March 12. She is second on the team with an RQS of 9.875 on beam. Her second-team honor is the first All-Big Ten honor for Breen.

Laeng, a junior from West Middlesex, Pa., has been one of Nebraska’s most consistent performers this season. She started her season strong, winning titles in each event, including a career-high 39.350 in the all-around, at the season-opening Arizona State triangular meet. She has won 12 event titles this season and has a solid 9.855 RQS on vault. She was named Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Week on Jan. 11 and Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week on Feb. 1. Laeng was the 2015 Big Ten Co-Champion on the uneven bars and a member of the All-Big Ten Championship team. Her second-team honor is the first All-Big Ten honor for Laeng.

Nebraska returns to action next Saturday, March 19, for the Big Ten Championships in Lincoln. The Huskers will compete in the second session, which begins at 4 p.m. (CT). The first session begins at 11 a.m. (CT). Both sessions will be televised live on the Big Ten Network and a live stream can be seen on BTN2go.com. Nebraska will be competing against Minnesota, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Penn State in the night session at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Illinois, Iowa, Maryland and Rutgers will be competing in the morning session. For tickets, log on to huskers.com/tickets or call 1-800-8-BIG-RED.

FIRST-TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Sunny Kato, ILL
Giana O’Connor, ILL
Mollie Drenth, IOWA
Nicole Artz, MICH
Brianna Brown, MICH
Talia Chiarelli, MICH
Olivia Karas, MICH
Austin Sheppard, MICH
Lindsay Williams, MICH
Bailie Holst, MINN
Lindsay Mable, MINN
Hanna Nordquist, MINN
Hollie Blanske, NEB
Grace Williams, NEB
Kiera Brown, PSU
Briannah Tsang, PSU

SECOND-TEAM ALL-BIG TEN
Allie Glover, IOWA
Angel Metcalf, IOWA
Kathy Tang, MD
Lisa Burt, MSU
Elena Lagoski, MSU
Ciara Gardner, MINN
Madeline Hanley, MINN
Danielle Breen, NEB
Jennie Laeng, NEB
Kaitlynn Hofland, OSU
Alexis Mattern, OSU
Jamie Stone, OSU
Nicole Medvitz, PSU